Despite our best efforts to care for our hair with the right products and treatments, there are times when it just does not act or feel right. Our products may no longer work like they used to and the feel of our hair may scream damage despite its healthy appearance. When that happens, we may be baffled, but sometimes the answer is as simple as examining our ends closely. Damage caused by every day wear and tear, heat styling or simply the age of our hair can cause it to act out. A simple trim may fix it, but some of the damage may still be there. Why not consider doing a mini chop and cutting two or more inches off at your next trim?

What Can You Fix With a Mini Chop?

Split ends

Trichoptilosis, more commonly known as a split ends, is caused when the protective cuticle at the very end of the hair becomes damaged causing it to split into two or more strands. Damage resulting in splits can come from day to day wear and tear, and once you have them, they cannot be repaired. The best course of action is to trim the hair to get rid of them. Small trims that remove the last ½ an inch from the hair are good, but the problem is that many naturals can attest to having seen splits that are inches up from the end of the strand. It would be impossible to check each strand for splits, so it's best to give your hair a thorough trim to get rid of most of them.

Single strand knots

A single strand knot is created when the hair curls in on itself and creates a knot along the length of the hair. For the most part, these knots do not really pose a threat to the health of the hair and are barely noticeable. They do, however, affect your ability to detangle since the knots make the hair tangle prone. Also, the ends of the hair may feel rough and single strand knots may be more apparent when doing stretched styles like braid and twist outs when the ends of the hair refuse to become smooth. As with split ends, a small trim may rid you of the single strand knots lower down the length of the hair, but they have also been known to form several inches up the hair shaft.

Getting Rid of Damage

Over the years, anything from heat to poor hair care and a lack of strengthening treatments can cause our hair to weaken and become damaged. Over time this damage worsens, and since the ends of our hair are the oldest, they are more than likely the most damaged. Those ends are usually frizzier and duller than the rest of our hair, so rid yourself of those dead ends with a mini chop to improve the look of your entire do.

Here are some things to keep in mind when doing a mini chop:

Removing that much hair can leave it uneven if not done properly. If you are a DIY curly, trim gradually trimming less than you desire, then more and more as you become more confident with your trimming skills. It’s best to use this method, because if you cut too little, you can always go back and cut more, but you can’t put it back if you cut too much.

Use hair shears to cut your hair. I cannot stress this enough. Using ordinary blunt scissors can do more harm than good and cause more split ends to develop.

Finally, after your mini chop, expect to have smoother silkier hair that will detangle like a dream. You''ll also have to use less product to get your hair to cooperate.

I hope this article helped a curly in need. As always, remember to have love, peace and curly haired bliss.